India's new defence minister Aarakkaparambil Kurian Antony, nicknamed the "Saint" by supporters, hinted Wednesday that he will enforce a ban on middlemen in military contracts. "In all aspects we will try to protect national interest and that is a priority," Antony said in reply to questions from reporters on how he planned to control middlemen in arms deals.
The 65-year-old Antony, a three-time chief minister of southern Kerala state, entered Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's cabinet late Tuesday with the coveted defence portfolio.
Incumbent Pranab Mukherjee was moved to the foreign ministry after the previous incumbent Natwar Singh resigned amid allegations he skimmed millions of dollars from Iraq's scandal-ridden UN food-for-oil programme.
Antony, a lawyer by profession, promised to inject transparency into purchases by the Indian military, the world's largest arms buyer.
"We are living in a democracy, that too a transparent democracy. Every action of a public man, whether a minister or official or parliamentarian is being scanned by the people.
"And everyone should be aware of this fact," Antony warned after taking charge of the world's fourth largest military on Wednesday.
He rubbished suggestions that probes into several defence deals were aimed at settling political scores with India's ousted Hindu nationalist BJP government.
"It would not be proper for me to over-react unless I am fully aware of the facts in the sensitive ministry," said Antony, whose return to the cabinet ends his 11-year hiatus from national politics.
Earlier this month, the police brought corruption charges against former defence minister George Fernandes and a retired naval chief in a multi-million dollar arms deal with a state-run Israeli firm.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) also charged Jaya Jeitley, leader of Fernandes's opposition Samata (Equality) Party with accepting bribes to clinch a deal for seven Barak anti-ship missile systems from Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd.
The CBI said retired admiral Sushil Kumar, prodded by middle-men, strongly lobbied for the purchase of the missiles from the same firm for which a contract was signed in October 2000.
The agency also raided the homes and offices of defence agents in five cities in connection with four separate cases of alleged illegal payoffs involving Israel, Russia and South Africa.
Fernandes is also embroiled in a bribery scandal in the purchase of coffins for soldiers killed during a bloody skirmish with rival Pakistan in Kashmir in 1999.
Following a massive arms kickbacks scandal in the mid-1980s, a clause was put in all Indian government defence deals stating a company could be blacklisted and contracts cancelled if it pays middlemen.
Source: Agence France-Presse
